Sentir: Examples, Sentences and Quiz in French

Introduction

Sentir means “to feel”, and it is one of the most useful verbs in French — you will meet it in conversation, in books, in films and in every textbook. This page puts the verb to work: twelve example sentences across the tenses, a short dialogue you can act out, a tour of the verb in its most important tenses, the mistakes learners make most often, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. Every form on this page comes from the verified conjugation tables for sentir, so you can trust what you read here. Start with the examples, say them aloud, and then test yourself with the quiz at the end.

Example sentences

Twelve sentences with sentir, in different tenses and with different subjects. Read the French first, guess the meaning, then check the English.

  1. “Je sens une fleur dans le jardin tous les jours.” — “I feel a flower in the garden every day.”
  2. “Tu sens le froid en hiver tous les jours.” — “You feel the cold in winter every day.”
  3. “J'ai senti que quelque chose change cette semaine.” — “I have felt that something is changing this week.”
  4. “Il sentait une fleur dans le jardin autrefois.” — “He used to feel a flower in the garden in the past.”
  5. “Nous sentirons le froid en hiver demain.” — “We will feel the cold in winter tomorrow.”
  6. “Tu as senti que quelque chose change cette semaine.” — “You have felt that something is changing this week.”
  7. “Je sentirais une fleur dans le jardin un jour.” — “I would feel a flower in the garden one day.”
  8. “Il est important que il sente le froid en hiver.” — “It is important that he feel the cold in winter.”
  9. “Nous avions senti que quelque chose change avant la fête.” — “We had felt that something is changing before the party.”
  10. “Il sentira une fleur dans le jardin demain.” — “He will feel a flower in the garden tomorrow.”
  11. “Ils sentent le froid en hiver tous les jours.” — “They feel the cold in winter every day.”
  12. “Sens que quelque chose change !” — “Feel that something is changing!”

A short dialogue

Marie and Pierre are talking about a flower in the garden. Read the dialogue aloud, one voice per person, and notice how sentir changes with the tense and the subject. Every form of sentir below is taken from the verified tables.

Marie : Tu fais quoi, ce soir ? Pierre : “Je sens une fleur dans le jardin tous les jours.” — “I feel a flower in the garden every day.” Marie : Et demain ? Pierre : “Je sentirai le froid en hiver demain.” — “I will feel the cold in winter tomorrow.” Marie : Tu as fait ça hier aussi ? Pierre : “J'ai senti que quelque chose change cette semaine.” — “I have felt that something is changing this week.” Marie : Tu ferais ça un jour ? Pierre : “Je sentirais une fleur dans le jardin un jour.” — “I would feel a flower in the garden one day.”

Notice how the dialogue moves through time: the present for what is happening now, the future for tomorrow, the passé composé for yesterday, and the conditional for what someone would do one day. The verb stays the same — only the tense changes — and that is the whole point of learning a conjugation table: one verb, many moments.

Sentir in different tenses

The same verb does different jobs in different tenses. Here are the six uses of sentir that matter most, each with a sentence you can copy and adapt.

The present: habits and facts

In the present, sentir describes habits, facts and what is happening now. The je form is sens: “Je sens une fleur dans le jardin tous les jours.” — “I feel a flower in the garden every day.”

The imperfect: the past as it used to be

In the imperfect, sentir describes the past as it used to be — background, habit, an action in progress. The il form is sentait: “Il sentait le froid en hiver autrefois.” — “He used to feel the cold in winter in the past.”

The passé composé: finished actions

In the passé composé, sentir reports one finished action, built with avoir plus the participle senti. The je form is ai senti: “J'ai senti que quelque chose change cette semaine.” — “I have felt that something is changing this week.”

The future: what will happen

In the future, sentir talks about what will happen. The nous form is sentirons: “Nous sentirons une fleur dans le jardin demain.” — “We will feel a flower in the garden tomorrow.”

The conditional: what would happen

In the conditional, sentir talks about what would happen. The tu form is sentirais: “Tu sentirais le froid en hiver un jour.” — “You would feel the cold in winter one day.”

The subjunctive: wishes and doubts

In the subjunctive, sentir appears after triggers such as il est important que. The form is sente, and the sentence keeps the same complement as the other tenses: “Il est important que je sente que quelque chose change.” — “It is important that I feel that something is changing.”

Common mistakes

Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Je sentir une fleur dans le jardin.”

✓ Right: “Je sens une fleur dans le jardin.”

The infinitive sentir never takes a subject. After je you need the conjugated form sens.

Using the wrong person’s form

✗ Wrong: “Tu sens une fleur dans le jardin.”

✓ Right: “Tu sens une fleur dans le jardin.”

sens is the je form. With tu you need sens. Check the subject before you choose the form.

Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Je sens une fleur dans le jardin hier.”

✓ Right: “Je ai senti une fleur dans le jardin hier.”

The time word hier points to the past, so a finished action needs the passé composé ai senti, not the present.

Using the indicative after a subjunctive trigger

✗ Wrong: “Il est important que tu sens le froid en hiver.”

✓ Right: “Il est important que tu sentes le froid en hiver.”

After il est important que French needs the subjunctive: sentes, not the indicative sens.

Forgetting the auxiliary in the passé composé

✗ Wrong: “Je senti une fleur dans le jardin.”

✓ Right: “Je ai senti une fleur dans le jardin.”

The passé composé of sentir needs the auxiliary avoir plus the participle senti: the full je form is ai senti.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on sentir. Choose the right answer, then check the answer key below.

  1. What is the je form of sentir in the Present indicative?

    • A) sent
    • B) sentons
    • C) sentez
    • D) sens

  2. What is the tu form of sentir in the Present indicative?

    • A) sent
    • B) sentons
    • C) sentez
    • D) sens

  3. What is the il/elle form of sentir in the Present perfect (passé composé)?

    • A) a senti
    • B) ai senti
    • C) as senti
    • D) avons senti

  4. What is the nous form of sentir in the Imperfect?

    • A) sentiez
    • B) sentions
    • C) sentais
    • D) sentait

  5. What is the tu form of sentir in the Future?

    • A) sentirai
    • B) sentira
    • C) sentirons
    • D) sentiras

  6. What is the je form of sentir in the Conditional?

    • A) sentirions
    • B) sentiriez
    • C) sentirais
    • D) sentirait

  7. What is the il/elle form of sentir in the Present subjunctive?

    • A) sentiez
    • B) sente
    • C) sentes
    • D) sentions

  8. What is the je form of sentir in the Pluperfect (plus-que-parfait)?

    • A) aviez senti
    • B) avais senti
    • C) avait senti
    • D) avions senti

  9. What is the gerund of sentir?

    • A) en sentant
    • B) en restant
    • C) en arrivant
    • D) en entendant

  10. What does sentir mean in English?

  • A) to hear
  • B) to feel
  • C) to stay
  • D) to arrive

Answer key

  1. D) sens — the je form of sentir in the Present indicative is sens. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. D) sens — the tu form of sentir in the Present indicative is sens. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. A) a senti — the il/elle form of sentir in the Present perfect (passé composé) is a senti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. B) sentions — the nous form of sentir in the Imperfect is sentions. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. D) sentiras — the tu form of sentir in the Future is sentiras. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) sentirais — the je form of sentir in the Conditional is sentirais. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. B) sente — the il/elle form of sentir in the Present subjunctive is sente. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. B) avais senti — the je form of sentir in the Pluperfect (plus-que-parfait) is avais senti. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. A) en sentant — the gerund of sentir is en sentant. The other options are the gerunds of neighbouring verbs.
  10. B) to feel — sentir means “to feel” in English. The other options are the meanings of neighbouring verbs.

Frequently asked questions

What does sentir mean in English?

sentir means “to feel”. It is a core everyday verb, so its present-tense forms are worth learning first.

Is sentir regular or irregular?

sentir is irregular in these tenses: present, passe-simple, present-subjunctive, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative. The gerund is sentant and the past participle is senti.

How do I practise sentir every day?

Say one sentence with sentir in the present, one in the passé composé and one in the future every day, using the examples on this page as models — for example, “Je sens une fleur dans le jardin tous les jours.”, “J'ai senti une fleur dans le jardin cette semaine.” and “Je sentirai une fleur dans le jardin demain.”. Then take the quiz again and check your answers against the key.

Pronunciation

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for sentir, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

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